1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to apparatus for the selective destruction of cells, and more particularly to a system of the type wherein cells arrayed in a plane are successively illuminated with a low powered light beam and examined for particular radiation resulting from this illumination to selectively enable a high powered beam to accomplish the destruction of particular cells.
2. Description of the Prior Art
From the German patent document DE-OS 53 31 969, a flow cytometry device is known for detection of interesting biological particles in a sample of unknown particles, in which a beam from a light source is directed onto the particles, and light related data is detected by a measuring device if the light beam strikes a particle. In this case the measuring device detects, inter alia, the fluorescence emitted by certain particles.
From the German patent document DE-PS 33 31 017, a process is disclosed for distinguishing various types of cell subpopulations, in which antibody proteins are labeled with fluorochromes; the labeled antibody proteins are combined with a sample of cells, in which specific receptors for the labeled antibody proteins are suspected; the fluorochromes are stimulated by suitable techniques and the cells are analyzed for classification on the basis of emitted fluorescence.